


Cephiro Fantasia

by thornoftherose



Category: Undocumented Features: Symphony of the Sword
Genre: Breaking the Fourth Wall, F/M, M/M, Meta, Multi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-10-26
Updated: 2013-10-26
Packaged: 2017-12-30 12:30:00
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,040
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1018630
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thornoftherose/pseuds/thornoftherose
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Corwin meets a strange young man who reveals to him the mysteries of the universe...</p>
            </blockquote>





	Cephiro Fantasia

**Author's Note:**

> Takes place during Symphony 3 Episode 1, "Ad Astra".

Corwin set down his drafting pencil and rubbed his eyes tiredly. It was a Friday night. Kozue was out, he didn't know where, and he was alone in the apartment he shared with her -- platonically, her obvious interest in him notwithstanding. She cloaked it in concern for Corwin's need -- and that was a big part of her schtick, wasn't it, expressing her need as concern for others'. Corwin thought what she _really_ needed from men right now was a friend who _didn't_ want to get in her pants -- perhaps, he admitted to himself, somewhat paternalistically. Or at least a male friend who was willing to shower cold for a while while she sorted herself out. Frankly he felt like a brother to her -- not, he understood, that that necessarily meant the same thing to her as it did to him. Corwin prided himself on thinking with the head at the top of his shoulders; he mistrusted the other organs to which his body from time to time tried to delegate thinking authority. 

He realized that he was staring at the picture of Kozue and her brother Miki, sitting on a marble bench in a garden somewhere, laughing together, which sat on her bookshelf. It was the only ornamentation on her shelf -- indeed, nearly the only ornamentation in the room. Corwin was not unsentimental, but he didn't expect to be staying in Cephiro long, and so had packed only the things he needed for the semester. Kozue was apparently sentimental enough for the both of them. He looked down at his drafting slate again, but the figures swam in front of his eyes. He checked the time -- damn, it was already late enough that he should be in bed. On the weeknights Kozue rigidly enforced his breaks, but it was a Friday night, she was off Allfather-knew-where, and he had gotten absorbed in his project. Even so, he liked to keep a regular schedule, and without his usual Friday night plans on Jerrado, there was nothing worth staying up for. He leaned his head against the wall and closed his eyes experimentally, but -- no, he was too wired to sleep immediately. If he tried now he'd be up half the night. Right, about that cold shower. And maybe, first, a walk to clear his head. Some exercise and fresh air would do wonders.

He threw on his jacket and headed out into the cool spring night. It was a little cool yet for a drive, and anyway the car was Wakaba's now, and his was back in Midgard. So he just walked somewhat aimlessly, trying to avoid spots that brought back too many unpleasant memories, and an hour or more later found himself headed back to his apartment, head pleasantly clear, with a couple onigiri in his pockets from the campus's all-night convenience store.

"It's a nice night," said a voice.

Corwin's eyes focused. There was a young man leaning casually in his doorway, dressed in jeans and a windbreaker with the Tenjou Academy logo, hair tied back in a ponytail. "Oh no, not another one," Corwin said to himself, dropping into a fighting crouch and reaching out to summon Stick, his fighting lance.

The man chuckled and held his hands up. "No, no, it's not like that." Corwin relaxed fractionally. "I'm not another one of Kozue's ex-lovers, out to... avenge myself on you? Whatever it is they think they're doing. I can honestly say I've never laid eyes on the girl."

"Who are you?" asked Corwin, putting Stick away and straightening. "And what are you doing outside my apartment at this time of evening?"

"My name is Thorn," the young man said, "And I had hoped that we could talk."

Corwin laughed ruefully. "I would ask if it could wait until tomorrow, but after the adrenaline rush you just gave me, I won't be sleeping any time soon, so it may as well be now."

"Could I come in?" Thorn asked. "I brought food and drinks, if you'd like." He reached down and picked up two bags, from one of which came the clinking of glass bottles jostling each other. "This school has a very well-stocked all-night convenience store, I'm impressed."

"Uh, sure," said Corwin, a bit confused, moving past Thorn to unlock the door to the apartment. "I don't drink, but I appreciate the thought."

"Oh, there are non-alcoholic beverages in there too," said Thorn. "I sort of thought you might be the teetotalling type."

"Good guess," said Corwin, opening the door and gesturing for Thorn to enter.

"Mmm. It was, wasn't it."

"How do you know so much about me?" asked Corwin, turning on the lights after checking to make sure that Kozue wasn't back yet. "Are you a student here?"

"For a little while now, yes," said Thorn. "The coffee table?" he asked, gesturing with his bags.

"Sure, just let me move my drafting stuff," said Corwin. He suited actions to words as Thorn began pulling the drinks he had brought out of the bags and arranging them on the table.

"You brought a lot of drinks," said Corwin, sitting finally in his accustomed place, stretched out at one end of the cream-colored leather couch.

"I wasn't sure if Miss Kaoru would be joining us, so I bought enough for all of us," said Thorn, sitting down in Kozue's usual place and stretching his legs out under the coffee table. Corwin was suddenly uncomfortably aware that the couch was the only furniture in the apartment upon which one could sit which wasn't a bed, and that he was taking up well over half of it. He sat up somewhat hastily. Usually he and Kozue shared the couch, one at each end, occasionally tickling each other with their feet, while they worked on schoolwork or he drafted and she played games or watched television on her tablet. (She had returned to Cephiro with a rather impressive collection of Midgardian television, including the complete Battlecruiser Vengeance, courtesy, Corwin guessed, of his sister and Utena.) "No, no, it's fine," said Thorn. "I don't want to make you feel uncomfortable in your own home. Blood orange soda?" he asked.

"Sure, thanks," said Corwin, taking the proffered beverage. He was grateful for the distraction but now painfully aware that he was being a bad host. He realized he was still wearing his jacket. "Onigiri?" he asked, pulling one out of his pocket. "Oh, no, thank you," said Thorn. "Save it for breakfast. Oh, I mean -- you should have it if you want, it's your house, but, ah," and he began pulling the makings of a credible Western-style light supper -- salami, cheese, crackers, vegetables, hummus -- out of his other bag. "Sorry," he finally said, busying himself with the food and not looking at Corwin. "I subsisted on onigiri for a while when I first got here, and now that I have a bit of money I have a hard time looking at the stuff."

"Of course" said Corwin. He took the other onigiri out of his pocket and set them both on the table so he wouldn't forget about them, then struggled out of his jacket and helped himself to a carrot stick.

"Oh, yes, please do," said Thorn. Corwin watched as he tucked a stray hair behind his ear. He seemed more flustered than he had when he'd first come in. It was actually a little... distracting. Corwin half-turned to get a better look at the young man. He was -- despite his claim to be a student, Corwin guessed that he was a few years past college-age, judging by the goatee and moustache and what looked like half a day's growth of beard. He looked a little careworn, Corwin decided. His eyes were a mild gray; his hands as he opened and unwrapped the food were the hands of a pianist. He moved with some assurance still, but he slouched a little more than he should. His wavy, dark-brown hair, tied back in a pony-tail, spilled down his back to his shoulder-blades. Corwin found it odd to see hair that length which was of that color -- pink was more usual -- and remarked as much.

Thorn smiled. Corwin was fairly certain he blushed a little, even though the light made it hard to be sure. "It used to be blue," Thorn said. "Not bright like your Mr. Kaoru's, a dark blue, the kind you might mistake for black in low light. Considered putting that on my passport. I sometimes still forget that it's not that color. Do you mind if I...?" he asked, indicating the beer bottles.

"No, not at all," said Corwin.

"Mmm, thank you," said Thorn. He considered for a moment before picking a bottle, and popped the top with a silver ring he wore on his right hand, wincing a little. He shook out his hand. "I see microbrews cap their bottles tighter here too." He took a sip, then let his eyes roll back into his head. "Mmm. Oh my god. It's been too long. Wonderful floral hops character, a little bitter hops bite, just enough malt on the finish. I had been worried that, Cephiro being so srongly related to Japan, its beer would be terrible too, but no, someone here knows how to brew. Thank god. I've missed this."

Corwin was now thoroughly confused. "You know about the Ten Worlds?" he asked. Thorn looked at him, his expression unreadable. After an uncomfortable silence, Corwin backtracked. "So, uh, thank you for the food, and, uh... what was it that you wanted to talk about with me this evening, which caused you to go to so much trouble?"

Thorn was silent for long enough that Corwin almost opened his mouth to ask again before deciding to wait him out. He was growing frustrated when Thorn finally started to speak.

"So, I do know about the Ten Worlds, and they -- or rather that knowledge -- is what I want to talk to you about. And no---" he said, in response to Corwin's unasked question, "---I'm not an Asgardian, despite what you might expect given the name."

"Thorn isn't an Asgardian name," Corwin said.

Thorn frowned. "But you take my point."

"Sure, it's a letter in the Asgardian alphabet, but nobody would actually name their kid that," Corwin said. Thorn looked, if anything, more annoyed. "But go on," Corwin said.

"So my name is actually a reference to---well, that's beside the point, but, anyway---oh, fuck it, there's no good way to say this. What if I told you that there's another world besides the Ten Worlds?"

Corwin was pretty sure his face was betraying his dubiousness. "An Eleventh World? It's been rumored, but the math just doesn't work..."

"No," said Thorn, "more a---a meta-world. A world which contains all Ten Worlds."

"Oh," said Corwin, "sure, there's hyperspace and metaspace and the Eighth Dimension and..."

"No," said Thorn, "I mean, those aren't really meta-worlds, you can't travel between, and wherever you go when you do that Amber worldwalking trick isn't quite right either---"

Corwin narrowed his eyes at the word 'Amber' -- the way Thorn said it made it sound like he knew something Corwin didn't.

Thorn continued, "I mean a meta-world in which none of those exist. In which, in fact, the Ten Worlds don't really exist, at least as you know them..."

"Okay," said Corwin, "sure, that's also been postulated, and the jury's still out -- I think there are some people at Nekomi who are working on that, my mother knows some of them. But really, other worlds are a dime a dozen -- here, one sec," he said, getting up and going to the bookshelf. "Did I bring it with me?" he muttered to himself.

"Bring what?" asked Thorn.

"Aha!" said Corwin. "Here." He presented a slim volume triumphantly to Thorn. "Read this," he said. "It might help you get your thoughts in order." It was a well-worn copy of Derek Bacon's "So You've Just Arrived from a Parallel Dimension".

Thorn took the book somewhat hesitantly. "Right," Thorn said, "I forgot about that. You people have enough worlds and dimensions and people dropping through them that you've got an _orientation handbook_ to get us started. Thank you," he said, "I've always wanted to read this. But that's really, again, beside my point."

"You've heard of this book?" Corwin asked. "I didn't realize other dimensions had Derek Bacon. Nobody else I've met -- and I've met a few dimensional travelers in my time -- has ever mentioned it! That's really interesting. But how did you know about it if you forgot about it?"

Thorn sighed heavily. "That's what I've been trying to tell you. Your world exists... inside mine. I know so much about you and it because I can... interrogate it. In a way."

Corwin was experiencing an exquisite feeling of simultaneous utter confusion and increasingly complete fascination -- much more on the side of confusion than he was used to.

"Okay, go on," he said. "How do you -- 'interrogate it'?"

"So, ah, does your world have fan fiction?"

"Hunh?" Corwin said. "What's that got to... Oh," he said, as things started to fall into place for him. "Sure," he admitted warily, "Kate's got a pile of Battlecruiser Vengeance Koth/SpoQ stuff she wrote stashed somewhere, and I know she's shared them with some other people. I've got a guess where this is going, but... Why do you ask?"

"So," Thorn said, "ah..." He half-turned on the couch to face Corwin, and looked him in the eye. "Corwin Ravenhair," he said, "you are a fictional character."

"I see," said Corwin, mouth quirking into a smile. "In a fanfic, you say?"

"Ah, yes," said Thorn, hastily looking down.

"I don't come from anywhere else, do I? A book, a TV show, a movie?"

"Nope," said Thorn, shaking his head. "You're an original character."

"Well, that's a relief," said Corwin.

"Well, you're named after a character from Roger Zelazney's Amber books, and that's where your worldwalking power comes from, but there's a lot of other characters that have gone into you as well. You're a bit of an avatar, frankly."

"I'll take that as a compliment," said Corwin. "I think."

"And your friends---well, Cephiro and Kozue and Utena are from Revolutionary Girl Utena, which is a TV series---a Japanese series, an anime---and a manga and---but they're mostly from the anime, really, and Cephiro is actually from another manga, Magic Knight Rayearth, by CLAMP..."

Corwin shook his head bemusedly, letting the words wash over him. "I see."

"And your mom is from Norse mythology by way of Oh My Goddess!, and the Jedi---have the Jedi been introduced yet?---are from a Western movie..."

"I see," Corwin said again. "That's all very confusing. Are there other original characters?"

"Well, yes, Kate's an original character... And your father... but your father's a special case."

"Are you telling me that you're the author of this fanfic? The god come to Earth---or, well, Cephiro?"

"No, no," said Thorn. "Well, yes, I'm the author of this fic, but I'm not the author of you, see, your father---"

"Who you said was special."

"Yeah, your father is really the primary author of the fic."

"So you claim to be writing a fanfic of a fanfic."

"Yes."

"Into which you wrote yourself."

"Yes."

"I see," said Corwin. "That's very..."

"Meta," said Thorn. "I told you I came from a meta-world."

"And you're telling me that my... father also comes from your meta-world?"

"Yes," said Thorn. "At least originally. He's been here long enough that he may have forgotten it by now."

"I see," said Corwin. "You mean the author?"

"No, no," said Thorn. "I mean the character. You know how authors say fictional characters take on a life of their own...?"

"Right. I see," said Corwin. He sat still for a moment, digesting what he'd just heard. Absent-mindedly he reached for another carrot stick.

"Oh, that's a good idea," said Thorn. He opened another beer. "You're taking this much better than I expected," he continued. "Honestly I think I'd be a complete wreck if someone showed up on _my_ doorstep and told _me_ that _I_ was a fictional character."

"Thorn," Corwin said quietly, "if what you're telling me is true, you _are_ a fictional character."

Thorn looked taken aback. "Oh," he said. "Oh. You know, I never thought of it that way before."

"Right," said Corwin. "So, I understand that you believe what you just said to be true, and I have no reason to doubt you. Unfortunately, except for your apparently voluminous knowledge I have no reason to believe you either. I know it's trite, but I don't suppose you can... demonstrate it to me, somehow? Break the laws of physics in a small and reversible way?"

Thorn winced. "Not really," he said. "Now that I'm here I'm bound by your laws of physics... well, mostly. There's some information leakage, as you've observed, side-channels and timing attacks and so on. There's the possibility of causality violation, although I've tried hard to avoid that---"

"Emphasis on small and reversible, remember," said Corwin.

"I mean, FTL, which you have, implies causality violation, which your world has so far seemed to avoid on a grand scale, for which I'm really deeply thankful, as it makes my head hurt," said Thorn all in a rush, "and---"

"Right, right," said Corwin. "This is all fascinating, and I would deeply love to continue this conversation, but I'm up too late already, so let me cut to the chase and ask---why are you telling me all this? What do you gain by it?"

Thorn didn't answer immediately, but rummaged in his bag and pulled out something that looked to Corwin like a tricorder.

"What is it?" asked Corwin.

"It's a plot device," said Thorn. Corwin opened his mouth. "No, of course not. It's a tricorder." He scanned Corwin. The tricorder beeped. "Good! You've got the genetic potential. Here, have another carrot stick."

He took Corwin's hand, and plopped three carrot sticks in it, then took another and started to munch on it himself. The touch was a little startling. It reminded Corwin why he'd gone out for a walk in the first place, before he'd met Thorn, and that he probably hadn't touched another human being's hand, in... he couldn't remember how long. He'd touched Kozue, but despite the familiarity with which she treated him, they went more for poking than hand-holding.

"I'm serious," said Corwin. "Why are you telling me all this?"

"So, it's not really turning out the way I had hoped," said Thorn. "I'm not really sure what I'd expected, though, I mean -- you're so analytical, and so devoted to Utena -- of course you always fixate like this. You're so... you're so frustrating!" he said, not looking at Corwin.

"I am?" said Corwin, taken aback by his vehemence.

"I'm sorry," said Thorn, still not looking up. "It's not really your fault."

"Because you think-- I mean, because I'm a ficional character?"

Thorn took another pull on his beer and didn't answer. Finally he said, "Maybe we got off on the wrong foot. Hi," he said, sticking his hand out, which Corwin shook confusedly. "I'm Thorn. I'm... an engineer. Do you have computers? An Internet here? I work with computers."

Corwin was intrigued in spite of himself, but still unsatisfied. "I mean, we do, and I'm building one right now, but did you really come here to talk to me about computers?"

"Kind of? Maybe?" said Thorn.

"I don't believe you," said Corwin.

"All right," said Thorn, "so, look, I can't violate causality here, but -- and I always say this at about this point, and it hasn't worked yet, but maybe this time -- the advantage of this being ultimately fiction is that I can try as many scenarios as I want until I find the one in which somewhat improbable things happen, right? And I think I've screwed this one up royally, again, so I may as well take a chance and go for broke, right?"

Corwin was taken aback. "I... guess that follows," he allowed. "Why are you asking me...?"

Thorn leaned in suddenly, angling his head slightly. Corwin could smell the beer on his breath. "Uh, hi Corwin Ravenhair," said Thorn. "Hi."

Corwin flushed. So that was where this was going. Was this something he wanted? He couldn't tell.

"You came here to kiss me?" he asked.

"Well, yes---well..." Thorn looked up at Corwin as if waiting for an answer.

Corwin nodded.

Thorn kissed him.

* * *

Corwin heard Kozue come in as Thorn was lazily sucking at his cock. Thorn's lips felt sticky on him. Corwin lay with his head back over the arm of the couch in blissful contentment. He heard Kozue drop her backpack with a squelch and looked up. She was drenched head to toe from the rain. (It had started raining? Corwin hadn't noticed.)

"Oh!" she squeaked. "Ah." Corwin started to say something---apologize, probably, he thought---but Kozue stopped him with a hand. "I'm just going to go get these off and get in the shower. You boys keep having fun."

* * *

"You haven't, ah, gotten off yet. Do you want to do... you know. Like they do in fanfic?" Corwin asked. He thought he felt Thorn smile against his neck.

"No, I don't think so. Even in fanfic that shouldn't be a first time thing. It takes practice -- trust me on this."

They were lying together spoon-style when Kozue emerged from the bathroom, wrapped in a towel. She smiled sardonically and shook her head. "Corwin Ravenhair. I didn't know you had it in you." Corwin mumbled something indistinct. "And you haven't introduced me to your gentleman caller yet. Who is quite right, you know."

Corwin half-sat up on his elbow, stammering. Thorn sat up and leaned over him. "My name is Thorn. I'm very pleased to meet you." He took her hand, which forced her to bend slightly and readjust her grip on the towel, and shook it.

"I'm Kozue," she said. "It's good to meet you too. I don't know whether to feel jealous or thankful."

"You could join us," Thorn said. "If Corwin's okay with it, of course."

* * *

Kozue arched back against Thorn with a series of loud moans as he played with her nipples. Corwin watched them, his tongue lashing furiously between her legs.

Eventually she and Corwin sat up. She kissed him lightly on the nose. "See? That wasn't so bad." She turned to Thorn. "Thank you."

"You're welc---"

Something that sounded like an alarm went off in one of Thorn's bags. He scrambled off the couch, displacing Kozue, pawed through the bags and pulled out the tricorder. "Shit shit shit. I'm really sorry! I've got to go!"

"Wait!" said Corwin.

"Nope! Sorry!" Thorn half-pulled on his pants and his jacket and dashed for the door, leaving shirt and underwear and all the half-eaten food. He turned halfway out the door. "You'll probably never see me again, but thank you! This was a lovely evening! And I'm really sorry about this!" He pressed something on the tricorder.

* * *

Someone was half-lying on Corwin. He opened his eyes. His drafting pad lay propped on one side of his chest and Kozue was curled up with her head on the other side. They were both fully clothed. She must have come in after he had fallen asleep.

He started at a thought. He had just had the strangest dream... He really hoped none of it had been... evident to Kozue. She was certainly in a position to notice. He tried to check his pants discreetly. Still dry, at least, thank goodness. Kozue shifted a little.

"Kozue," he said. "Kozue." She opened her eyes a bit and lifted her head.

"Yeah, Corwin?"

"Do you ever have... odd dreams?" he asked.

"You mean like... sexy dreams?" she said through slurred lips.

"Yeah," he said.

"Sure, all the time," she said, seeming confused. "What about them?"

"Are they ever things or people you don't think you'd like, but then you... yeah, and you do?"

"Yeah..." she said. "Did you just have one of those?"

"Yeah," Corwin said. "Yeah. He was very nice about it."


End file.
